


Break Our Hearts (And Our Legs) pt III

by Lukutoukka



Series: Break Our Hearts (And Our Legs) [3]
Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: But not that much, M/M, Maybe a bit, this is not sad anymore y'all
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-21
Updated: 2018-05-21
Packaged: 2019-05-09 19:06:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14721867
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lukutoukka/pseuds/Lukutoukka
Summary: Dex figures out what to do next. Nursey is caught off guard.





	Break Our Hearts (And Our Legs) pt III

**Author's Note:**

> I'm having so much fun writing this y'all. Even if this isn't sad anymore.

“Will you be coming home?” his mom asks. Dex shrugs.

“I need to talk to the doc, but maybe I can come home for some time while doing physical therapy,” he says. “Depending on what PT will look like.”

“You know we’re happy to drive you to Portland, if that’s what it takes,” his dad says over skype.

“We just don’t want you to be alone with the leg. You’re going to need help getting around and all that. If you were home..” she tapers off, clearly sensing his annoyance. He knows they just want to help, and he appreciates it, he really does, but at the same time, it’s really getting on his nerves.

“Chowder and Farmer invited me to stay with them,” he says, then, haltingly: “There’s something else I wanted to talk to you about.”

He explains. His parents listen.

“You know we support you no matter what,” his mom says when he finishes. His dad nods on the screen.

Dex takes a deep breath. “I think I need to do this,” he says. “I guess I need to make a few calls.”

***

Derek is waken up from his nap by his phone. He grabs blindly for it and hopes it’s at least important.

“What,” he croaks.

“Did you know?” the voice on the other end of the line demands to know. “And do you know where he is now?”

Derek blinks at his ceiling. “Did I know what?” he asks. “Who is this, anyway?”

“It’s Chowder. Did you know Dex was planning to come out?”

Derek is suddenly very awake. 

“What,” he says. Chowder sighs.

“Which part are you confused about?”

“All of them,” Derek says. “Where you got my number from, for example, and did you just say Dex planned to come out? You’re gonna have to walk me through this slowly.”

Chowder sighs again.

“I got your number from Shitty. And Dex just came out on instagram, then dropped the whole thing on his twitter and we don’t know where he is. His phone is off.”

Derek sits up slowly. “Dex has instagram?”

“This is what you take from this? That he has instagram? But yes, he does now. His coming out post is his first post ever. So you don’t know where he is?”

Derek is still working through all that information, but manages to answer Chowder anyway. “No, I don’t know where he is. How did you manage to lose him, anyway? He’s on crutches, he can’t be that fast.”

Chowder grumbles. “I have no idea, to be honest. Call me if he reaches out to you, okay?”

“Yeah, I… Wait! What’s his instagram?”

“wjpoindexter, what else,” Chowder says and hangs up.

***

Dex takes one last look at his first ever instagram post - the pride flag, his caption - then he turns of his phone and smiles at the flight attendant.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome on our flight to Las Vegas. My name is Maria Rodrigues and I’m your pilot today.”

Dex drums his fingers on his brace. He just hopes that this isn’t a mistake.

Shortly after take off, he falls asleep.

He dreams of Derek opening his door only to shut it in his face again, without a word.

***

“I’m taking this step, today, because my fear of being found out and what that would do to me and my career paralyzed me, tainted both my relationships and my friendships and I hope that with me coming out now, others will find the strength to be braver than I was, to show as much of themselves as they want to, not what they feel they’re allowed to.”

***

Derek is staring at Dex’s instagram post in a daze. He presses “like”. He really does, too. It’s plain and simple and yet… He continues staring at the flag, rereads the caption.

Finally, he closes instagram and calls Shitty.

“Yo brah, wassup?”

“Dex just came out.”

***

Dex stares at the concierge. The concierge stares back.

“Could you maybe ring up to him? I’m a friend of his,” Dex says. The concierge sighs as if calling a resident to check if the person in front of him is allowed up wasn’t literally his job and reaches for the phone.

“Mr. Nurse, this is the front desk. I apologise for the interruption, but there’s a Mister-” he looks at Dex, who suppresses his own sigh and opens his mouth to tell the guy his name for the third time, when the concierge’s face changes.

“I - yes, yes that’s - I will send him up right away. Yes of course, Mr. Nurse.” The guy turns back to Dex, suddenly a whole lot warmer than before. “Mr. Nurse asks you to be send up right away. 12th floor, to the left, if you will.”

Dex gives him a terse smile and hobbles over to the elevator, fighting with his crutches and the bag slung over his shoulder.

***

The second Derek hangs up on his concierge - he hates that snotty guy - he opens his door and power walks - it’s definitely not a run and he definitely doesn’t slide to a stop - the five steps to the elevator, in socks.

The display above the elevator slowly ticks upwards.

1… Derek bobs on the balls of his toes.

2… Dex asks himself if this really was a good idea.

3… Derek grips the hem of his shirt in an effort to hold onto something.

4… Dex considers the likelihood of Derek waiting in his door. High, he thinks. But what if -

5… Derek hasn’t seen Dex in person - on the ice excluded - since he walked out of Dex’s apartment that night three years ago.

6… He’ll probably wait in the door, Dex tells himself. No chance to run. He’s committed now.

7… If the San Jose sun brought out more of Dex’s freckles?

8… Dex concentrates on breathing.

9… Derek freezes. What the hell was he supposed to say?

10… Dex clutches his crutches tighter. The paper with the little speech in his hand crumbles some more.

11… Derek holds his breath.

12… Dex worries his lip.

The elevator dings to signal its arrival.

The doors slide open.

**Author's Note:**

> Also, because I forgot on the last works: Come visit me on [tumblr](http://vanillivilovesreus.tumblr.com/)
> 
> And, since I recently crossed 300 kudos on a single story (wtf y'all) (It's ["Frames Of Reference"](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14385909) for those interested.) feel free to shoot my a prompt and I'll see if I can write a little something for some of them.


End file.
